Effect of Mordant Types and Methods on the Color Fastness Properties of Silk Fabrics dyed with Brown Seaweeds

Abstract

Natural dyes come from plenty of sources including plants, animals, insects or microorganisms. At present, natural dyes are highly demanded in textile application. In this study, brown seaweed (Sargassum spinosum) extracts were utilized for silk coloration with the use of metallic salts mordants (Iron II Sulphate and Aluminium Sulphate) and biomordants (cinnamon and chitosan). Dyeing was performed with pre-mordanting and simultaneous mordanting methods. The dyed fabrics were analyzed in terms of color fastness properties to washing, perspiration, rubbing and light. The results revealed that seaweed dyes with cinnamon mordant gave darker shades and higher absorbency towards silk which is comparable to iron mordant. The approach of using biomordant is parallel to the sustainability demand of natural dyes in textile application.